Technical Field
The present invention relates to a roof antenna for a vehicle, which is mounted on a roof of a vehicle.
Related Art
Various types of antennas exist as antennas to be mounted on a vehicle. As one of these antennas, roof antennas which are mounted on a roof of a vehicle are known. Because the roof antenna is mounted on a roof which is at the highest position of the vehicle body, a high reception sensitivity can be realized. As such a roof antenna, a roof antenna commonly called a “shark fin antenna” is known, which is superior in compactness and design.
This roof antenna has an antenna unit in which elements, a circuit board, and the like are integrated, an antenna cover covering the antenna unit, and a pad which hides a gap between a lower end of the antenna cover and the roof (for example, JP 2013-229813 A).
Because the roof antenna is mounted on the roof, the design (fine appearance) thereof is important. Because of this, it is necessary to make a lower end of the antenna cover closely contact the roof with a pad therebetween, to prevent a gap between the lower end of the antenna cover and the roof, and the antenna cover is designed to correspond to the roof shape (radius of curvature of the roof).
However, because the roof shape of the vehicle differs depending on the kind of vehicle, the shape of the antenna cover must be designed for each kind of vehicle, and a die is necessary for the antenna cover for each kind of vehicle. Consequently, for each kind of vehicle, the number of steps of design and cost of the die are increased, and it has been difficult to reduce the cost.
In consideration of the above, an advantage of the present invention is that a roof antenna for a vehicle is provided in which a same antenna cover can be used for different kinds of vehicles, and the cost related to the antenna cover can be reduced.